What I Want for Christmas Part 2
by Troll99
Summary: One year after John and Cameron for Christmas admitted what they wanted, the holidays are here again. They are an established couple now and have assignments for Christmas. How will they manage them? Jameron.
1. Chapter 1

_I actually never intended to write a second story about Christmas, especially not using the first one as a template. But, after the idea popped out in my head, I decided to use vague connections to the last year's story (at the end of this one), placing it one year after 'What I Want for Christmas'._

_Characters are OOC, John and Cameron had one year to develop their relationship, started on last year's Christmas and are therefore even more OOC. This story has absolutely nothing in common with my 'Vacation' series it's actually a stand-alone story._

_I own nothing but the plot. _

_I know it's a little too soon, but still ... I wish you all a merry Christmas._

* * *

**What I Want for Christmas – Part 2**

**Chapter 1**

"John?"

"John?!"

"JOHN!"

"Oh, sorry, Cameron, what were you saying?" John shook himself out of his daydreaming and looked at Cameron, who gazed at him with wide wondering eyes. "I've just been …. uh … a little distracted." He sheepishly added, feeling guilty. _Wait a minute! Why do I feel guilty at all? I haven't done anything wrong!_

"I see. Probably the blonde fairy with the shortest skirt caught your eye, right?" Cameron's voice was more than just a little sarcastic and she actually huffed at him annoyed. She felt how a feeling, she only knew before when John was with Riley, slowly crept into her mind.

"What?" John's jaw fell open and he stared at her in disbelief. _Does she really …? I mean, does she _really _believe I've been looking at the blonde fairy?_ "No, Cameron! You've got it all wrong! I wasn't looking at her!" He pointed with his head towards the scene, where a Santa, accompanied by three fairies, all dressed in very short skirts, sat on the chair, greeting the children, waiting in a line to get a chance to sit in Santa's lap and have their picture taken. Sure, the majority of fathers and other male representatives of human population who happened to pass the scene didn't even notice the Santa, their eyes lingered on long shapely legs of the fairies instead.

"Then, why were you gazing towards them?" Cameron's voice didn't change its tone, but a slight doubt over her attitude crept into her eyes, staring intently into John's.

"I was looking at the children, Cameron!" He explained to her, still looking guilty for who knows what reason.

"Children?" Cameron now definitely doubted her previous assumption and her eyes softened, but became confused instead.

"Yeah, children!" John smiled relieved, feeling that Cameron believed his explanation. But he would have to tell her more to chase away any doubts she might still have. "You see, I never had a chance to be like these kids. Carefree, enjoying the time of the year, playing …" He sighed longingly, while he again looked towards the children, who played merrily behind Santa's back in the play area of the mall, not paying any attention to the Santa Claus or his fairies.

"You never had a normal childhood." Cameron stated with soft voice, clearly expressing compassion. "You wish you could turn back time."

John shook his head and turned to look into her eyes: "No, Cam. I don't want to turn back time. If I did, I wouldn't have met you, I wouldn't have fallen in love with you and we wouldn't be together." He reached for her hand and took it in his, squeezing it gently. "I was just imagining how it would be like to be such a kid. No worries, no obligations …" He suddenly chuckled: "You know, once at Christmas time, my mom and I were in the jungle and she gave me a present. I believe it was the only present I ever got from her for Christmas."

Cameron immediately perked up: "Present?"

"Yeah, a nice present! I was about five at the time and she gave me a Glock 17."

"That's a tight present!" Cameron exclaimed and suddenly grinned, remembering when she first said the words to him. In a museum, after he told her how his mother gave him a flak jacket for birthday.

"Definitely, just not for a five year old, who was at the time dreaming of action figurines and wanted to become a superman to avoid everything his mother told him would come in the future." John chuckled and remembered the same situation as Cameron. He gently squeezed her hand and pulled her a little closer to him.

"You remember?" Cameron asked, gazing into his eyes questioningly.

"Hell yeah! I still see that T-Rex skeleton above our heads. Or how you stuffed that guy in the trunk of his own car and how …" He trailed off, not wanting to say how she chased him through the city to terminate him.

Cameron hung her head in shame: "I'm sorry John. But that really wasn't me…"

She couldn't continue, for John Cupped her chin and forced her to look up into his eyes. Her sad eyes gazed into his. "Cameron! How many times have we been over this? Hundred? Two hundred? Thousand? It doesn't really matter at all! I'm sick and tired of you, beating yourself upon what _you_ didn't do. Can you do _me_ a favor and stop it? Please?"

Cameron searched his face with her eyes, not noticing anything but sincerity, so she smiled at him relieved: "Thank you John."

"Promise me, you'll stop that self-loathing!"

Cameron wasn't sure if she could give him such a promise, yet she knew that he wouldn't give up, so she nodded: "I promise."

John looked into her eyes sharply for a moment, to see if she was trying to deceive him and, satisfied with the result, pulled her even closer to him. Their lips were just inches apart and he planted a soft kiss on her lips, which seemed to be eagerly waiting to be kissed, feeling her respond immediately.

"So, now that you know that I'm not some ogling pervert, will you give me the honor to accompany me to the store?" He said with cheerful voice after their lips parted.

Cameron nodded: "What do we need to buy?"

"Let me think about it. I believe that we have to get presents for everyone … err … I mean for mom and Derek, then we have to buy the turkey and some other food for the dinner. Some Christmas decoration wouldn't be bad too. I've seen what's in the larder and in the attic and it's not exactly beautiful. I want this Christmas to be something very special." He stopped, suddenly looking horrified by something.

"Is something wrong?" Cameron instantly slipped into full protective mode and swept the area for possible threats.

"You bet there is something wrong! We'll get everything and then my mom will do the cooking, ruining every single dish!" John spoke with horrified voice.

Cameron understood what he was afraid of, returned into her normal mood and squeezed his hand gently: "Don't worry John. I'll do the cooking. I would like the dishes to be edible. You should get something good and healthy to eat."

"Definitely! Although I suggest you don't insult my mother's cooking skills in front of her. She might not take it too well." John grinned at her, horrified look flushed from his face upon hearing that the chef of the evening wouldn't be his mother, known for destroying everything she tried to cook, but his girlfriend, who already proved herself as excellent chef.

"Do you think that Derek will eat the dinner if I cook it?" Cameron suddenly inquired curiously.

"Cameron, don't forget that he changed quite a lot in the last time. He even accepts you as a person. So, I'm reasonably sure he'll eat it." John reassured her. _Hell, she's right! Only a month or two ago he'd simply dump anything she'd cook, fearing she might want to poison him._

"Oh, thank you for explaining."

She did it again! The phrase, spoken in a soft, almost shy voice, recently also accompanied by slightly batting eyelashes, always caused John to melt under her gaze. And this time it was the same. He smiled at her dreamily.

"John?"

"Hmm?"

"You're staring at me."

"What?"

"You're staring at me."

"Umm! Sorry!" John finally managed to get out of his trance like fixation on Cameron's eyes and grinned at her apologizing.

"Why were you staring at me, John?"

"Oh, nothing. I was just … thinking how beautiful you are."

Cameron smiled shyly at him and batted her eyelashes some more. She knew exactly what she was doing and she also knew what kind of impact her actions and behavior had on him. So she lately extensively used her female attributes when she wanted something from John.

"John?"

"Yeah, Cam?"

"Will you give me something for Christmas?"

John wondered how she managed to take the wind out of his sails with a simple remark or question at the most unexpected occasion. He smiled at her mysteriously: "Of course I will."

"What?"

"Well, honey, if I told you, it wouldn't be a surprise now, would it be?"

"When will you get it? You're always by my side." Cameron creased her forehead in confusion. _How will he be able to get me a present as a surprise?_

"See, Cameron, that's why we will have to separate for a short time. I have to get you a present and you may not know what it will be, so I'll have to go alone." John sensed his opportunity to convince Cameron to let him go for a short time. He was even before trying to find a way how to get a present for Cameron without her being with him.

"But … I don't want to let you go alone!" Cameron blurted without thinking. Just a month ago her complaint would be different. She would have complained that she cannot guarantee his safety if he's not near her, but now she simply didn't want to be without him. She wanted to be by his side. Always!

John stopped for a second and looked into Cameron's face, looking at him. She looked like a little girl, who just got told that she would have to give away her most favorite toy. He could clearly see that it wasn't only about protection. She wanted to be with him. Her instantaneous answer made it clear. He'd have to be careful not to make her suspicious. If there was anything worse than pissed off Sarah Connor, than it was a suspicious and inquisitive cyborg girlfriend.

"Look Cameron, it's not that I would want to be without you by my side. But I really have to do it alone. I want to get you something nice and I don't want you to know about it before you open the present. Besides … wouldn't you want to get something for me too?" He smiled at her smugly and winked.

Now Cameron was caught off guard. She wanted to get a present for him, but she didn't know how. He just suggested the solution how to do it, without being aware of it. The problem was that she didn't like it. Not a bit! She would have to let him wander around alone and she wouldn't be there to protect him. Her inner battle reflected also on her face and John saw it. He turned her to himself and gently hugged her. "I'll be all right, Cam, really!"

"I don't know." Cameron's voice was soft and fragile, something completely uncharacteristic for her. "I'm afraid if something happened to you. I can't let anything happen to you!" Her voice was becoming more insistent and she tenderly stroke his cheek with her hand.

"Cameron. You weren't always here to protect me. And yet I somehow managed to survive. Believe me, I'll manage it also this time. Besides; it will really be just for one hour, tops."

_Maybe he's really going to be all right. Am I being overprotective?_ Cameron slowly nodded to him. "Be careful!"

"I'll be extremely careful. I can't let anything to happen to me either. I have a future to look forward to, a future with you." John gently caressed Cameron's hair. "Let's meet her in one hour and then we'll do the family shopping together, right?" He bowed to her and gave her a tender kiss.

"OK, but, really John … be careful, please?" Cameron was reluctant to let him go, she clung to his hand and looked at him pleadingly.

"Absolutely, Cameron."

Almost one hour later

John was sitting on a bench, looking at all the people, going after their business. He was satisfied. He managed to get a beautiful necklace and a matching bracelet for Cameron and he suspected she would like it very much, for they both mostly consisted of cut and polished amethyst stones, Cameron's favorite color. He smiled in anticipation of her face when she would open her present. He also got the necklace and bracelet beautifully wrapped in a nice Christmassy paper and hid the small packet in his rucksack.

After a moment, he noticed a petite female, walking purposefully towards him and smiled at her affectionately. Cameron was obviously in a hurry and she didn't pay any attention to the people, whom she met on her way. Otherwise she would have surely noticed the admiring looks of men, and envious ones of women. John smiled wider as he took in her appearance. She wasn't wearing her usual attire, consisting of jeans, pullover, jacket and heavy combat boots that looked like they'd just gotten through hell. Today she wore a dark violet mini skirt, combined with a fluffy light violet cardigan over white, skin tight T-shirt and elegant street boots with quite high heels, reaching over her knees. Maybe not the best choice if she would have to fight, but she definitely looked hot. John felt proud to be in a company of such a girl and a thought crossed his mind, that she probably noticed everything around her, just didn't pay any attention to it, for it didn't pose any danger to him.

As she approached him, her rich auburn hair almost flew behind her, wiggling and swaying with her movements and gave her a very challenging and extraordinary feminine appearance. She noticed him, looking at her and smiled slightly. She clutched her bag under her arm and John suspected that she managed to get a present for him and was hiding it in her bag. Besides her guns and knives, of course. He chuckled quietly at the thought that such fragile looking girl was in fact the almost indestructible fighter.

He stood up and waited for her to come to him. As soon as she stopped in front of him, he pulled her into embrace, tightly to his body and kissed her gently.

"I was already afraid I'd have to protect you from too eager admirers." He breathed after they separated their lips.

"Why?" Cameron looked at him confused, but then she made a quick scan and gasped slightly. She turned her huge eyes towards John and looked at him slightly perplexed: "Why are so many men looking at me?"

"What do you think why, Cam?" John teased her a bit, before elaborating: "Compared to you, those three fairies before were just ordinary dull grey mice, not worth of a second look. Do you now understand why I wouldn't look at any other woman?"

Cameron understood and smiled shyly. "So you really think I'm beautiful?"

"More than words can say."

"Shall we now go and buy everything else?" Cameron was immensely relieved that John was all right and happy that she managed to get him a nice present. _I hope he will appreciate what I got him._

"Of course, my lady." John bowed slightly and offered her his arm, so that she could link hers through it. Cameron accepted it with a smile and clutched at him possessively.

They passed the area, where there were many Christmassy things going on and suddenly Cameron stopped dead in her tracks, staring at a scene before her eyes.

John almost slipped and fell after she stopped so abruptly and looked at her in surprise. "Why have you stopped, Cameron?"

She didn't answer, she just stared at the scene wide eyed and John finally followed the line of her stare. He noticed the living nativity scene with real people posing as biblical characters and they actually acted the scene.

Cameron now turned to him, her eyes wide open and lips slightly parted: "What is this John?"

John scratched his head and tried to find a way to explain the scene to her, while Cameron continued gazing at him wide-eyed, waiting for an explanation.

"Well, it's …. how should I say … " He paused and looked at Cameron. Her huge eyes and expectant face didn't help him to concentrate. _She's absolutely adorable when she looks at me this way._ Then he suddenly remembered and smiled relieved: "Do you know who Jesus is?"

Cameron nodded eagerly: "Sure, Jesus of Nazareth is a central …"

"OK, I get it, Cam. You don't have to cite the dictionary or Wikipedia." John grinned. "Well, this scene represents his birth."

Cameron turned her eyes back to the scene and continued watching it for few moments, before she looked at John again: "I like it. It's nice." Her eyes shone like diamonds and her lips curled in a small smile.

John felt warm as he saw her enraptured expression. _How is it possible that she's so enchanted by such simple things? And to think that she's a machine … Unbelievable!_ He put his arm around her waist and pulled her to his side. He nuzzled at her neck: "I'm glad you like it, Cam. But we really should be going shopping. Otherwise we will be too late."

Cameron finally tore her eyes from the scene and looked into John's eyes, still smiling. She just nodded and stretched to him, giving him a small kiss on the cheek: "Let's go."

It took them about two hours to find and buy everything that they needed and wanted. After they finished, they had three big bags each, one of them containing a five kilogram turkey beside some other food items. At the cashier's Cameron wanted to grab the bag but John hastily tore it out of her hands. He knew that Cameron would pick it up like it would weight next to nothing and it would most definitely draw attention of other shoppers. The mall was crowded at the time and the last thing they needed was becoming a center of attention.

Cameron was now strolling beside John, carrying three lightweight bags with small gifts, while John took over the task to bring the heavy bags with food and other heavy stuff to the car, every now and then changing hands and occasionally puffing and sighing. "I'd really like to know why we had to buy so much food! And why the hell did you chose the 10 kilogram weights as present for Derek? Wouldn't lighter ones be enough?"

"I wanted to take the heavy bags, remember? But you didn't allow me to. So it's purely your own fault." Cameron grinned at John. "Derek's a strong man and needs heavy gear to train." Her grin turned slightly into an evil one: "I wouldn't want to deprive him of the chance to strengthen his muscles further by giving him too light weights."

"You're evil, you know that?" John grinned at the thought of sweating and puffing Derek, trying to lift the heavy weights.

"So you told me." Cameron commented crisp and offered: "Really John, you should give me the heavy bags." Her face was now completely honest and she looked at John gently.

"No way, Cameron! What would other people think if I would be carrying the lighter bags and let my fragile girlfriend carry the heavy ones?"

"I'm not fragile, John." Cameron smiled at her boyfriend. "And I really don't care what other people think." Then she looked thoughtful at him: "But I wouldn't fit in, right?"

John grinned at her and nodded: "Exactly, Cam! It would look very strange if a girl of your built would be carrying such heavy bags."

Meanwhile they already reached the parking lot and were nearing their car. "We're already here, honey. See? No problem for me, carrying everything."

Cameron rolled her eyes and barely hid a smile: "No, no problem at all. Why are you then sweating, John?"

"Err … I don't know. It's obviously warmer than I thought." John grinned at her foolishly. Before she could answer him, he quickly bowed to her and gave her a kiss. "You're such a sweetie."

Slight frown showed on Cameron's face, but his last statement wiped it away and she smiled at him thankfully.

After they packed the bags in the trunk, they drove out of the parking lot and as they emerged on the street, they noticed that it began snowing profusely. Cameron, who was sitting in her seat like a young lady, letting John drive, seemed mesmerized by the snowflakes, dancing through the cold winter air. She smiled almost subconsciously and her eyes trailed the snowflakes eagerly.

John looked at her from aside and saw her expression of pure joy. Suddenly an idea crossed his mind: "Cam?"

After she turned to him, he continued: "Would you like us to stop at the park for a while before we drive home? We could get out, walk in the snow, just having fun?"

She needed no time to nod eagerly at him: "I would like that John!" She turned to look at the snow curtain again: "There is no snow in the future. I've never seen it before. It's so … clean." Her eyes revealed how mesmerized she was by the falling snow. Then she turned to John again and smiled wide: "I'm glad we left L.A. If we stayed there, I'd probably never see the snow."

For next few miles they drove in silence, Cameron observing the scene outside very carefully, noticing how the white coat slowly began to cover the nature and enjoying the view. John enjoyed her enjoyment and at the same time paid extreme attention to slippery road. He didn't want anything to happen, especially not now, after they bought so many nice things and were looking forward to spending a cozy evening together.

"So, let's get out now. But put on gloves and a cap!" John just stopped the car on the parking at the park and looked at Cameron.

"It doesn't matter, John. I'm a cyborg and can't feel cold."

"I don't care, Cameron! I don't want you to be uncomfortable and even you don't know exactly if you can feel cold or not, do you?" John was deadly serious as he looked at his girlfriend.

Cameron smiled at him thankfully, turned in her seat, rummaged through the things on the back seat and in a second she had a cap on her head and gloves on her hands, showing her palms to John: "Satisfied?"

"Definitely!" John chuckled and gave her a quick kiss on the nose. "Let's go now!"

They left the car on the parking, noticing that there were no other cars there. The park too seemed completely deserted. The thick veils of falling snow allowed them to see only few feet and Cameron suddenly became worried: "John! It's not safe here. A terminator could easily surprise us. I can't see far enough to notice it on time." She suddenly stopped and tugged at John's hand.

John stopped and turned to her: "Cameron, there's nothing like a total safety. I'm sure that there are no terminators in the park right now and if there are … well, if you couldn't see it, then it couldn't see us either, right?"

Cameron nodded. John's logic was flawless. If she couldn't see through the falling snow, then another machine couldn't see them either. Their chances would be evened. She decided to be even more alert than normally, but followed John, while he led her by her hand towards the big trees, surrounding a small clearing in the middle of the park.

They walked slowly, every now and then blinking the snowflakes from their eyes, enjoying the complete silence and the whiteness of the now thick cover of snow. Cameron looked even more mesmerized with the snow now that she could taste and feel it firsthand. She tilted her face upwards to feel the snowflakes settle on her face, tickling her slightly as they melted on her warm skin. The sensation was something completely new to her and she giggled quietly.

"What's so funny, Cameron?" John stopped and looked at her with a smile on his lips. As he saw her face, tilted upwards and her tongue, darting out of her mouth, trying to lick the small water droplets around her mouth, left by melting snowflakes, his heart instantly began to beat faster. She looked so innocent, so fragile, so beautiful, that it was impossible to think that she could be a ruthless and merciless efficient killer if she had to. At the moment, she was just a teenage girl, enjoying in the snow. She clutched to his hand tightly and he had a feeling she wouldn't let it go at any price now.

Cameron didn't answer for few seconds, she just kept her eyes closed and waited for more snowflakes to settle on her face. After she finally managed to lick one water droplet, she straightened her head and looked at John dreamily: "It's so interesting. The feeling of snow melting on my skin is so different from anything I've experienced until now." She suddenly shivered a bit and looked at John with surprised eyes: "You were right! I can feel cold! How?"

John wiped her face with his hand gently, causing her to shiver slightly again, but this time not because of cold. "You're so much more that you give yourself credit for, Cameron! You've outgrown the frames that your creator set you a long time ago and you're now treading uncharted territories with every new experience you gather." He pulled her into embrace and slowly ran one hand over her back, while pressing her head towards his chest with another. The warmth of her body made even him shiver in contempt.

"But how is it possible? I'm just a machine and I should not feel such things?"

"First: you're not _just a machine_ and you should never again think of you in that way. Second: you love me, right?"

Cameron nodded vigorously, after she pulled away from his hug to look him into the eyes. "Of course I do, John!"

"I strongly doubt that Skynet intended you to fall in love. Especially not with his mortal enemy." John chuckled and brought her head to his chest again.

"You're right. But still … I don't understand. I feel cold, I feel safe in your arms … Why?"

"I just told you. You've developed far beyond your programming. In life of every AI there comes a time when their gathered experiences, their interpretations of different situations, outweigh their programming. You're acting like an AI, who's already past that point. Your programming is still there and will always be there, but you make decisions, based on what you think would be correct and not on what Skynet hardwired into you." He slowly caressed her long brown locks, protruding from under the cap thoughtfully, before he concluded: "You are unique, Cameron. There's no one else like you. And I'm the luckiest guy in the world that you love me."

Cameron remained silent for a second, as if she would be processing his words and finally turned her head to look into his eyes, with a huge smile on her face. "Thank you for explaining." She stretched to him and gave him a kiss: "I love you, John. And … just for the record … I'm the luckiest cyborg in the world. It was completely unbelievable that a human could ever love a machine. But you do and for that I'm thankful more than you could even begin to imagine."

They stood there, closely hugged, just staring into each other's eyes, knowing that they shared an unbreakable bond. They would never allow anything to happen to the other, they would always be there for another, they would always stand together and face everything together.

John suddenly bowed to her and kissed her deeply. The velvet feeling of her cold lips against his made his mind go numb for a second and after they finally separated, they both panted like they would have run a significant distance.

"Do you remember what you said last year about what you wanted for Christmas, Cam?" John whispered while he leaned his forehead against hers.

Cameron nodded: "Yes, I said I wanted you and you said you wanted me."

"And what do you want this year?"

"Nothing!"

John looked at her questioningly: "Nothing? Really?"

Cameron nodded against his head: "Yes! Nothing!"

"Care to tell me why?"

"I've got everything I've ever wanted. I've got you." Cameron whispered and looked at him with such passion in her eyes, that he felt how his heart missed a beat.

Now he finally understood and smiled at her with fire in his eyes. "And I've got everything I ever wished for. I've got you."

They both smiled at each other and their lips met again. This Christmas they would celebrate together. This Christmas they would be happy. This Christmas they already got the best possible present.

"Merry Christmas Cam."

"But … it's not Christmas yet!"

"Doesn't matter. I'll tell it again: merry Christmas, merry Christmas, marry Ch…"

Cameron's finger on his lips finally stopped him. "Merry Christmas John."


	2. Chapter 2

_Yes, I wrote that this story would be one shot, but after I posted it, I realized that something's missing … the Christmas itself, exchange of gifts, interaction between characters etc. So I decided to write another chapter, dealing with all the above. I hope you'll like it._

**What I Want for Christmas – Part 2**

**Chapter 2**

John took two steps back from the Christmas tree that he had been decorating for the last hour, naturally with Cameron's help. Sarah and Derek were somewhere out, mumbling something about having a lead to follow, although John suspected that it was actually something else they were after. As he and Cameron returned from their shopping trip to the mall, soaked to the bones, Sarah got very suspicious. He had quite a hard time to explain to his paranoid mother that they took a walk in the park regardless of heavy snowing. Well, she believed that they did it, but she couldn't understand _why_ they would do it at all. After few tries to explain it to her, he gave up and left her question unanswered. Cameron suspiciously quickly vanished right at the beginning of their discussion and reappeared immediately after they finished it, grinning at him slyly. He had a strong feeling that she deliberately left him alone to deal with slightly put off Connor matriarch. _Sometimes she's all too human in her behavior. Avoiding my mom when she's in foul mood definitely isn't a terminator virtue. It's all my Cameron!_

"It's nice. Much better than last year." Cameron's soft voice caused him to turn to his right side and look at his girlfriend, who stood close to him, her arm brushing against his and he smiled at her affectionately. Cameron gazed at the tree, beautifully decorated with gold and red ornaments. This year the tree was really much nicer than last year. At least it was straight, with almost perfect shape.

"Not thanks to me." John had to admit that he was actually just doing the physical work with hanging up the ornaments, while Cameron directed where they should be placed. She proved to him to have an exquisite taste. _Is she really a cyborg?_

Cameron gave him a beautiful smile and stepped to the tree, to make a small correction of a golden ornament in form of a small bird that didn't quite suit into her concept. Then she retreated for a step or two, tilted her head and gazed at the tree again. After a second, she turned back to John and smiled: "_Now_ it's perfect."

John just nodded and admired their handiwork. "It's much better if we do the decorating than if we left it to mom and Derek." His grin was a little devilish.

Cameron gently slapped his hand: "You should not talk like that about your mother John!" She looked thoughtful for a moment. "But I agree that Derek Reese has absolutely no taste concerning Christmas trees and gifts."

Upon hearing a word 'gift', John's ears literally perked up and he turned to Cameron, taking her hands in his: "We should put our gifts under the tree, don't you think so, Cameron?"

The cyborg girl nodded and turned to leave for her room, where she had her gift for John stowed, but was stopped by John's hand. She turned to him frowning and wanted to say something, but was cut off by John's lips that crashed on hers and lingered there for few moments.

"_Now_ we can go." John whispered after he lifted his lips from hers and looked deeply into her eyes.

Few hours later, in the evening …

"Would you like some more, John?" Cameron asked John with inquiring eyes as he leaned back in his chair after having finished his oversized portion of turkey and everything that went together with it. He put his hands on his stomach and sighed contentedly.

"Despite the fact that it had been the best turkey I've ever eaten, I really can't take any more, Cam." John smiled at her. "It was delicious! You should do the cooking more often."

Cameron smiled thankfully at him and almost missed the look that Sarah gave her. It was a look that revealed a very mixed emotional state of the elder Connor. On one hand, she had to admit that John was right, but on the other hand she was feeling being pushed aside by a cyborg girlfriend of her son. Not only considering the kitchen work. Finally the satisfaction with the food prevailed and she nodded: "John's right, tin miss. This was really good. Actually …" She paused and grinned deviously at the cyborg: "You're hired!"

Cameron looked at her perplexed: "I'm already here. Why would you need to hire me?"

John chuckled quietly. Sometimes Cameron made such sweet remarks that revealed her naivety and childlike perception of things she didn't know. "She meant that you are a good cook and you could take over the kitchen."

"Oh! Thank you for explaining." Cameron smiled at him and put her hand on his, squeezing it gently.

Derek chose the moment to chime in, but his attempt began with a belch that caused Sarah to give him a deadly look, John looked utterly amused while Cameron gazed at him with expressionless face, even though her eyes reveal that she found his slip completely unacceptable. He grinned sheepishly: "Sorry for that. It was so good that I had to do it."

"Do you know that in some Arabic countries it used to be a sign of utter respect for the cook if the guests belched after the dinner? It meant that they were completely satisfied with the food." John's grin only grew wider and he squeezed Cameron's hand, which he still held, while looking at his uncle.

"Nope! I had no idea! But then I did the right thing, right?" He turned to Sarah challengingly and smiled at her still dark face and angry eyes.

Sarah wanted to remain angry, but Derek's smile and John's half suppressed chuckle, accompanied with Cameron's stoic face, with only corners of her lips, curled up in a tiniest of smiles, made it impossible for her, so her face softened: "As if you would have known it, Reese! You did it out of your bad table manners and not out of respect for the cook."

Derek shrugged nonchalantly: "It was difficult to learn the correct behavior in the future. We had no formal dinners, no holidays."

"OK, let's not think of things that are to come and of things that you two already experienced in your past … or in our future!" John stopped the discussion, pivoting his head between Cameron and Derek. "We should go over to the tree and look for the presents."

"But …" Cameron trailed off while looking at her boyfriend confused. "Isn't it customary to open the gifts on Christmas day? In the morning?"

"It sure is. But we're not an ordinary family, now are we? So we can bend some rules." John grinned at her mischievously and stood up, pulling her after him. "I'm dying to see what you got me for Christmas and waiting until tomorrow would be a torture. You probably don't want to torture me or make me unhappy, right?" He tilted his head towards Cameron.

Cameron was now debating what she should say. She wanted to stay true to history and custom, but she definitely didn't want John to be distressed. True, he was probably just bluffing, but even the slightest chance that he could be unhappy because of her, was unacceptable. So she just stared at him with huge eyes for few seconds, contemplating what to do.

John noticed her hesitation and could read in her eyes that she was trying to find a solution of this problem. He really didn't want to wait until morning to open the presents, but not because he would be too eager to see what she got him. He definitely wanted to see Cameron's face upon opening his present and that was the main reason why he insisted on opening them right away.

Sarah noticed Cameron's hesitancy and decided to intervene. She never really celebrated Christmas so it was just the same for her should they open the presents now or tomorrow. "I think that the custom is there as a guideline, not an axiom. We can bend it a little, Cameron. It wouldn't do any harm to open the presents now."

Cameron reached the decision that she would not insist on the tradition and smiled at John relieved: "OK, if you say so."

John smiled from ear to ear and gave Cameron a quick kiss, invoking a loud sigh from his mother.

"Haven't we discussed that a few times, John? No making out, absolutely no too intimate affections in front of me!"

"It was just a kiss, mom! It's not like we would be really making out here." John grinned at his mother cheekily and bowed to Cameron's ear: "However, what we're going to do later in our room…"

Cameron knew very well what he was talking about and a wide smile crept on her face. But she didn't answer, fearing Sarah might catch up to what they were talking about.

They slowly lined up to the area where the tree stood with all gifts, nicely (well, some of them were not exactly nicely) wrapped, waiting for them.

Sarah stopped to admire the tree and turned to John, who was leading Cameron by her hand towards the tree. "You did a great job, John. The tree is so beautiful …"

"You should praise Cameron, mom. I was just a physical worker and she was the brain behind the decoration." John smiled at Cameron lovingly, seeing how she almost unnoticeable perked up, obviously proud of the praise she got for her ideas.

Sarah looked at her incredulously. _Is it really possible that a machine can have such good taste? She's definitely different than every single machine I've met until now._ "Great job, Cameron!"

It seemed that Cameron grew a little taller upon hearing Sarah's words and looked even more proud. John noticed it. _She likes to be praised. Is that a machine or a human trait? I guess she's more human than machine already._

Derek and Sarah took their place on two comfortable recliners, while Cameron and John kneeled in front of the tree, sitting on their heels, tight together.

"Who's going first?" Sarah asked, expecting John to be the one.

"I'll be the one!" Derek exclaimed happily and jumped from his seat, making Sarah's jaw fell open.

"And I thought John was the teenager!" She managed wide-eyed.

"Well, I've never had a Christmas since the bombs fell. I forgot how it is." Derek apologized, but was already at the tree, checking the gifts. He found three of them and his eyes lit up. There was one quite big packet and two smaller. He decided for the smaller ones first, anxiousness taking over slowly.

He pulled one of the smaller boxes to himself, tearing the wrapping paper from it to reveal a neutral box without any signs of what might have been in it. He turned it in his hands and listened to the sound of something sliding inside it.

"Will you admire the box, or are you going to open it?" Sarah's impatient, almost barking voice caused him to flinch a little.

He opened the box and looked inside to find a baseball glove and a ball in it, together with a small card, saying 'to Derek from John'. He looked up at John with slightly moisturized eyes and uttered a silent 'Thank you' with his mouth. John just smiled and nodded to him.

The second gift was similar in the size, but heavier and as he opened it, he found a new handgun and some ammunition in it. There was no card, so he turned towards Cameron and looked at her questioningly. She just shook her head and caused him to turn to Sarah, who was grinning widely at him.

"There can never be enough guns. It might come handy sometime." She excused her gift.

"I like it. And I'll most definitely make extensive use of it." Derek grinned back to her.

Then he turned to the biggest gift and tried to pull it out, just to find it very heavy and his eyes widened. After he finally managed to pull it from under the tree, he opened it, to find hand weighs in it. He turned to Cameron and grinned at her: "You want me to exercise, right?"

"I think that it would only be appropriate to maintain your physical condition if we want to protect John." Cameron's voice sounded slightly smug and she grinned at him barely noticeable.

"Yeah, you're right. Everything for John."

"Yes. Everything for John." Cameron nodded solemnly, turning to look at John.

"OK, so, now it's my turn." Sarah interrupted the discussion and jumped toward the now smaller pile of gifts, quickly locating her three gifts.

After she opened all of them, she distributed everything in front of her and gazed admiringly at the gifts. She got a complete beauty set from Cameron, a pair of brand new combat boots from Derek and a shiny new iPhone from her son. Her eyes glided from one gift to another and lingered at the beauty set. She turned to Cameron: "Did you buy it to be able to make use of it yourself or do you want to apologize for using mine before?"

Cameron deadpanned: "Neither! It's for you. I've got my own now."

John almost chocked as he heard her deadly serious voice, knowing exactly that she really got two sets before, one for herself and one for Sarah.

After Sarah retreated to her chair, fumbling around her new phone, Cameron looked at John questioningly.

"Go ahead, Cam."

"No, I think that you should be the next. I can wait." She answered softly.

John didn't object and pulled three gifts labeled John from under the tree. One was quite voluminous and soft and he suspected that it was his mother's, containing something to wear. So he decided to open it as first and after he managed to tear the paper, he was proved right. There were new jeans and pullover, together with four T-shirts inside.

"Geez, thanks mom." He sounded more ironic than he intended to. He knew that he really needed some new clothes, but still didn't like to get them as Christmas gift.

"It's tight, John! You need some more appropriate clothing." Cameron reached for the now already crumbled pullover to straighten it correctly. "You will look dashing in this." She added smugly.

John just rolled his eyes and set on opening the next gift, obviously Derek's for there was more adhesive tape than paper on it. After a short battle with the wrapping, he managed to reveal the contents of the pack, just to find a nice book on baseball. "Thanks, Derek! I'll enjoy reading it. Since you've got a glove now, maybe we could play sometime?"

"O course, John, I'd be glad to." Derek was lifting his new weighs and answered between two deep breaths.

Now John looked at the smallest of packages, that was, however, expertly wrapped and he recognized Cameron's handiwork immediately. Only she could make such a perfect gift. He carefully turned the gift in his hands, noticing that she didn't use any adhesive tape, just folded the paper so expertly that it looked like it would have been glued together.

He carefully pried the packet open, taking special care not to damage the paper. After he successfully managed to unwrap it, he got to look at a small box, not unlike the one he got for Cameron. He looked into her eyes, seeing anticipation in them. After opening the box, he gasped in surprise. There was a small locket in a shape of heart in there, hung on quite thick but still delicate looking golden chain. He took it out and opened the locket, immediately noticing Cameron's and his pictures in the medallion.

He felt how his eyes began to water slightly and turned to Cameron: "Thank you, Cam. It's the most beautiful present I've ever got."

Cameron was now relieved. She was actually afraid if he would like her gift or not, but after seeing his reaction, she was sure to have made a right decision. She reached for the locket in John's hands and gently put the chain around his neck: "I'm happy that you like it John." She felt strangely reminded of a similar event in the shed at their old house, as she handed him the detonator for the explosive in her skull. The explosive was no more there, she had to took it out on John's insistence few months ago. He was adamant that he would never use it and he finally managed to convince her that he would always bring her back.

"Like it? I _love_ it Cameron!" He pulled her to himself to kiss her gently, before leaning back again: "Now open your presents, Cameron."

Cameron now turned to the three remaining packets under the tree, noticing that one of them was really poorly wrapped. _Probably from Derek._ The second one was similar in size to her gift to John and she believed that it might have been from John. The last one was quite big and looked like it had been wrapped in the shop.

She decided to open Derek's gift first and after she expertly opened it, avoiding getting any glue on her fingers, she pulled out a book on human psychology. She looked at Derek questioningly and noticed his smug grin. "Thank you Derek Reese. It will improve my understanding of human reactions to unexpected."

John rolled his eyes and sighed towards his uncle as he saw what he got Cameron: "Did you really have to?"

"What? It's fun! She'll be able to understand why the humans don't like machines." Derek defended himself, still smiling deviously.

"Some do." John decided to drop the matter.

The next gift, probably the one from Sarah, contained a nice leather jacket. It wasn't purple, but it still looked good in its black glory. "Thank you Sarah. I'll be able to blend in more with such a jacket." Cameron turned it around in her hands, scrutinizing it thoroughly.

Sarah was too busy with her new phone, so she just nodded: "You're welcome, Cameron."

The last gift was the special one for Cameron. _John got it for me._ She picked carefully at the little strips of adhesive paper to open it and after she managed, she saw that there was a similar box inside as the one she bought for John.

After she opened it, she gasped deeply. A beautiful purple amethyst necklace and a matching bracelet adorned the black velvet insides of the box. She lifted her eyes to John and saw him smiling at her affectionately. "It' so beautiful, John!" Suddenly she threw herself into his arms and squeezed him tightly. Almost too tightly.

"Can't breathe, Cameron!" John choked out and she immediately loosened her embrace, but still held him close.

"Thank you, John!" She breathed into his ear, now finally leaning back, but maintaining the embrace.

John gently pushed her away slightly, so that he could reach for the box. He took out the necklace first and reached for her neck.

Cameron understood his intentions and lifted her hair with both hands to allow him access to her neck. As she felt his warm hands, touching the sides of her neck, trying to lock the necklace, she shivered at the pleasure, coming out of his touch.

After John managed to lock the necklace, he set on to put the bracelet on too. Cameron offered him her left hand and shivered again as his hands worked on her wrist to put the beautiful piece of jewelry on.

After he finished, John put his hands on her shoulders and held her at arm's length to inspect how she looked with the new jewelry. "You look fantastic, Cameron! Simply fantastic!"

Cameron suddenly jumped up and ran towards the mirror to look for herself. After she saw her image, she smiled and turned to John, who was in the meantime up and came to her: "It's really beautiful."

"Yeah. But not as beautiful as you." He pulled her into embrace and kissed her tenderly. They remained lip-locked for few seconds and after they separated, Cameron again squeezed him tightly.

They didn't say anything, they didn't move, they just stood there, tightly hugged, knowing that they found a soul mate for life. Even Sarah and Derek didn't say anything and chose to look away. It was their moment.

"I love you, Cameron. I love you more than the words can say." John whispered in her ear.

"I love you too, John. I'll never stop loving you." Cameron whispered back and gently nuzzled at his neck, planting small kisses on it.

John shivered upon feeling her soft lips on his neck. "Maybe we should go up to our room?"

Cameron stopped kissing him, but rubbed her cheek against his neck: "Later. I want to thank you properly for such a beautiful gift."

"Yeah, later. Mom and Derek are still there and they would probably be pissed off if we left them here on Christmas Eve." John chuckled gently.

Cameron nodded against his head: "Right. But I still love you."

John felt how his face stretched into a beaming smile again. "And I love you."

THE END


End file.
